


He's Here to Stay

by aomiens



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Gen, little bit of oikawa, very little of iwaizumi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-27
Updated: 2016-07-27
Packaged: 2018-07-27 02:07:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7599244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aomiens/pseuds/aomiens
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kageyama thought if he could handle Oikawa as a roommate, he could handle anyone. He was wrong.</p>
            </blockquote>





	He's Here to Stay

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Froggie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Froggie/gifts).



> I saw your dear creator letter and my eyes immediately went to college au (amongst other things) and I thought of this silly situation. I hope you enjoy it! :D

“Are you gonna miss me Tobio-chan?” Oikawa asks as he drags his last suitcase over the threshold of the front door. Tobio watches as his roommate—well, now his _former_ roommate—gives the apartment one last quick glance. “I’m officially moved out!”

“It’s been…” Tobio struggles to find the right word. Having Oikawa as a roommate for three years has been… _interesting_ , to say the least. “It’s been fun.” 

Oikawa gives a dramatic sigh. “I know. I don’t know what you’re going to do without me!”

 _Sleep_ , Tobio replies in his head. “Are you sure you don’t need help carrying everything downstairs?”

“Nope! Iwa-chan should be here,”—Oikawa checks the time on his designer watch—“in a few minutes, he’ll help me carry everything.”

“Ah, tell him I said hello,” Tobio says. He always liked when Iwaizumi came to visit. He’s the only person Oikawa listens to.

“Of course, of course.” Oikawa sighs again. “Well, I guess this is goodbye, Tobio-chan.”

Tobio shrugs. “Not really. You’re only a train ride away.”

“Will you visit me? You should definitely visit me, Tobio-chan!” Oikawa throws his hands on the shoulders of the sleepy raven-haired boy and shakes him a little. “When’s the next time you’re free?” 

“I—uh—I don’t know? I’ll text you?”

A sudden high-pitched melody cuts through the air. Oikawa reaches into his pocket for his cellphone and checks the screen. “Iwa-chan is here!”

Perfect timing.

Tobio watches as Oikawa picks up one of his heavily stuffed suitcases and stands it upright again. He wipes his hands on his jeans before reaching out for Tobio and bringing him in for a tight hug. 

“I’ll miss ya, kid!” Oikawa gives his back a few pats and ruffles his hair. “Text me, okay?” He releases Tobio to wiggle his phone in his hand.

Tobio flattens out his fringe. “I’ll text you.”

The elevator dings down the hall and before Tobio has time to blink, Iwaizumi appears.

“Hey, Kageyama.” Iwaizumi nods. He looks at Oikawa with his hands stuffed in his pockets. “You ready?”

“Yup! Let’s go! Here, you can take the heaviest one.” Oikawa hands Iwaizumi the handle to the suitcase that looks like it’s about to explode. 

“What the hell…” Iwaizumi protests but still takes it anyway.

Tobio watches them as they roll the suitcases down the hallway and disappear into an elevator. When he closes and locks the door behind him, realization sets in.

Oikawa isn’t his roommate anymore.

He’s alone.

The side of his mouth quirks up. What should he do now that Oikawa’s hair dryer won’t wake him up at six a.m. anymore? There’s no one to barge into his room uninvited or excessively brag when he asks for help on a homework assignment. No more choking on cologne, no more tripping over left out shoes, no more waiting an hour to use the bathroom. All of that is now…

Gone.

Tobio feels a slight twinge of loneliness form in the pit of his stomach. Sure, Oikawa was nowhere close to a great roommate, but if he had to admit it, Tobio enjoyed his larger-than-life presence. He’ll, dare he say it, miss Oikawa.

He doesn’t remember walking to the couch, nor does he remember lying down on it but before he can do anything about it his eyes are closing and his surroundings are fading to black.  

 

\-------

 

_Knock, knock, knock._

 Tobio mutters something incomprehensible.

_Knock, knock, knock._

His eyelids flutter open unwillingly. It takes him a minute to recall where he’s at as he rubs the grogginess from his eyes.

_Knock, knock, knock._

Someone is knocking. That’s what woke him up. Tobio gets up and goes to open his front door.

“Oikawa, did you forget something already?” He mumbles under his breath and turns the doorknob.

The person standing on the other side of the door is not Oikawa.

“Hi! Are you Kageyama Tobio?” The unknown visitor asks.

Tobio blinks. “Yes?”

“I’m Hinata Shouyou! Your new roommate!”

The world stops turning. Did he just say _new_ _roommate_?

It takes a minute for Tobio to process the other individual standing in front of him but when he does he’s utterly confused. The person—Hinata?—is definitely male, he knows that much. He’s unusually short for a college student and has unruly, fire-colored hair and a strong gaze with his wide, russet eyes. There’s a bookbag sagging behind him and a cardboard box at his feet. Is this all he brought?

“Um.” Tobio frowns. “Who told you I needed a roommate?”

“I saw your request on the college’s classified ads site!” Hinata chuckles. “It was actually pretty funny…”

“But I didn’t post an ad?” Tobio scratches his head. Is this some weird nightmare he’s having?

“Eh?” Hinata is looking at Tobio like he has two heads. “You did post! I saw it with my own two eyes! Look, I even have a screenshot.”

Hinata pulls out his cellphone and taps his screen a few times. “Right here!”

A tiny phone screen is held in front of Tobio’s face. He has to squint to read the words.

 

_Hellooo fellow students~_

_My amazing, ridiculously handsome roommate is moving and I’m gonna be all alone in my two bedroom apartment (_ _╥_ ___ _╥) So sad!! I’m gonna be so bored and lonely…. I’m looking for a roommate who will be just as amazing as my previous one (which is impossible, just sayin'). If you’re interested please visit me at the address posted above!!_

_Byebye!~_ _≧_ _◡_ _≦_

 

“You’re a lot more cheery online than in person…” Hinata says under his breath.

Tobio doesn’t hear Hinata. His blood is boiling and his skin is tightening and he swears he’s seeing red. 

_Oikawa._

“That’s not me!” Tobio exclaims, pointing to Hinata’s phone. “I didn’t post that!”

Hinata furrows his eyebrows. “Then who did?”

“My old roommate did! He pretended to be me!”

“So…” Hinata’s attention is on his shoes, now. “You’re not looking for a roommate?”

Tobio drags his hands down his face in an attempt to calm down. “No, I’m not.”

Hinata is quiet, leading Tobio to believe he got his point across to this misinformed student. But then Hinata blurts out, “I’m willing to pay half the rent!”

“What?” 

“I’ll pay more than half if you need me to!” Hinata clasps his hands together. “Please!”

“Don’t you have somewhere else to go?” Tobio asks, genuinely curious.

Hinata bites his bottom lip. “No… I was abroad last semester and forgot to fill out the housing form so I’m technically homeless…”

 _That’s not my problem,_ Tobio wants to say, but no matter what his outer appearance may portray, he doesn’t have a cold heart. Especially not when Hinata is looking at him with such a sincere and desperate expression. He only lived alone for about, four hours, but it was a peaceful four hours, nonetheless.

Tobio nods. “Fine. Come in.”

And this is how Hinata squirms his way into Tobio’s life.

 

\-------

 

The first week goes by fine. Hinata puts his cardboard box in Oikawa’s room and uses Tobio’s foldable futon as his bed. It’s kind of disconcerting to see Hinata in Oikawa’s bare empty room. A room that was once full with so much life.

Tobio barely sees Hinata during the first week. The only time he manages to get a glimpse is in the morning when Tobio is lacing his shoes for morning volleyball practice and Hinata runs out of his room with his shirt halfway over his head and books sloppily thrown in his bookbag.

“Hi! Bye! Class!” he’ll shout as he grabs a piece of bread from the kitchen and bolts out the door, slamming it behind him.

It explains why he forgot to fill out the housing form.

In the second week, Hinata tries to interact with Tobio more. He takes a seat on the couch next to Tobio while he’s doing his homework on his laptop.

“Hey.” Hinata places his hands on his knees and peeks at the laptop screen. “Whatcha doin’?” 

Tobio gives Hinata a sidelong glance. “Homework.” His fingers rapidly move over the keys.

“For what class?”

“Human Anatomy & Physiology.”

“Wow!” Hinata gapes. “That sounds hard!”

“It’s not too bad.” Tobio shrugs.

An awkward silence falls over them. Tobio can’t help but notice how close Hinata is.

 _There’s so much room on the couch_ , he thinks. _Why is he sitting right next to me?_

Their arms brush when Hinata shifts his body into a more comfortable position. Tobio feels his arm twitch, ever so slightly.

“So!” Hinata props his head up with his hand. “You play volleyball, right?”

“Yeah.” Tobio is actually looking at Hinata now. “How’d you know?”

“Uh, are you serious?” Hinata laughs. “There’s nothing but volleyballs and volleyball posters when you walk past your room.”

“Ah.” He has a point.

“What position do you play?”

“Setter." 

“Nice! You look like a setter.”

“Do you play?” Tobio asks to be polite. He’s not the least bit interested, nope.

“Yeah, I do!” Hinata says and Tobio’s eyebrows shoot up. It’s not like he hasn’t seen short volleyball players before—one of the best liberos he knows is probably shorter than Hinata—but he didn’t expect Hinata to play. He seems too… uncoordinated. “I mean, clearly I’m not on the university’s team like you. I play for fun.”

“What position?”

“Middle blocker.” 

Tobio is impressed. He’d like to witness such a small guy block opponents more than half his size.

“I really love spiking, though,” Hinata says, his gaze in a far away place. “The feeling of the ball as it smacks against your palm…” He clenches and unclenches his hand in his lap. “It’s the best feeling.” 

For the first time since they met, Tobio understands Hinata.

“It’s just like… _BWACK!_ Y’know?” Hinata pretends to spike an invisible ball. 

Nevermind.

 

\-------

 

Hinata starts to get comfortable during the third week. A little _too_ comfortable, if you asked Tobio. He’s leaving messes in the kitchen, papers all over the living room, and puddles on the bathroom floor after he showers. One afternoon after class, Tobio decides he’s going to say something to his new roommate. 

He’s sitting on his bed watching a recording from his most recent game. He’s not satisfied with his play. He’s out of sync with his teammates and that’s unacceptable for the position he plays. If the setter is out of sync, the entire team is out of sync. Tobio is making mental notes on his timing when he hears a meow.

Yes, a meow.

He lifts his head and pulls out his left earphone, listening for the foreign sound. The apartment is quiet.

 _Maybe it was the video_ , he contemplates before resuming the footage.

Another meow. This time it’s louder, like it’s moving closer to him.

Tobio scans his room. There’s nothing out of the ordinary, so where the hell is that sound coming from? He’s about to get up and go search when something furry brushes against the leg he has hanging off his bed.

“What the—?!” He pulls his leg away immediately and an orange and black cat pokes its head out from under his bed.

 “ _Meow_ ,” the cat greets.

“W- What—?!” Tobio sputters. “What?!” 

He’s having an intense staring contest with the cat when keys jingle, the doorknobs rattles, and Hinata strolls in. 

“H- Hinata!” Tobio shouts.

“Yeah?” Hinata appears in the doorframe. Tobio doesn’t have to say anything more; once Hinata sees the cat he freezes. “I can explain!”

“Where did you get this cat from and why the hell is it under my bed?” Tobio asks.

“Listen.” Hinata walks to where the cat is and scoops it up in his arms. “I was walking home last night, right? Then Kenma here—”

“Kenma?”

“Yeah, he’s named after my friend Kenma Kozume because they look alike!” Hinata holds up the cat. Its tail swings lazily. “I gotta show you a comparison picture. Anyway, Kenma knocked over a trashcan and it scared the crap out of me. I was gonna keep walking but then he looked at me with the saddest eyes I’ve ever seen so I brought him back to the apartment and gave him some milk. I _promise_ I was gonna take him back but then we sort of bonded.” Hinata scratches between the cat’s ears and it purrs contently. 

Tobio feels a headache coming. “We aren’t allowed to have pets.”

“I know, I know! That’s why Kenma is staying in my room until I can find him a new owner.”

“He obviously doesn’t want to stay there if he’s in my room.”

Hinata scratches his neck. “He’s fine! I just left my door cracked and he got curious, it’s my bad.”

A sigh escapes Tobio’s mouth. He can’t believe he’s about to let Hinata keep this cat. If this were Oikawa, he’d never agree no matter how hard he pleaded. What makes Hinata the exception?

“Please, Kageyama!” Hinata pouts and holds Kenma close to Tobio’s face. Innocent feline eyes and dainty whiskers block his vision.

“I don’t want to see it outside your room.” 

Four days later Hinata catches Kenma cuddling up to Tobio as he types a paper.

 

\-------

 

The two-month mark brings the most embarrassing situation yet. The area has been getting hit with severe thunderstorms for the past week and it has been keeping Tobio from sleeping well at night. Booming thunder vibrates through the walls of the small two-bedroom apartment and a strike of lightning illuminates his dark room for a split second before it’s drowned in darkness once more. 

Tobio turns over in his bed so he’s facing the wall. He squeezes his eyes shut and tries to force his body to sleep. He has morning practice and he doesn’t want to be sluggish during it.

Another roll of thunder rumbles the walls.

“Stop,” Tobio mutters. Maybe the weather will listen to him.

It doesn’t.

Feeling restless, Tobio begins to roll over when his body hits something hard and warm. Half asleep, he doesn’t think too much about it. It actually feels kind of, nice. It’s like he has his own personal heater right next to him. He shifts closer so his back is touching the warm object. Instantly, his brain and body relaxes. His mind drifts in and out of consciousness as he starts to fall asleep.

 

His comfortable slumber is broken because of his ticklish nose. Tobio scrunches his face and raises his hand to scratch his nose. As he scratches his nose, he realizes his head is resting on something soft; something that feels a whole lot like hair. 

He immediately pictures Kenma in his bed getting cat hair all over his pillow, so he raises his head and opens his eyes to shoo the cat out of his room when he takes in what—or who, rather—is in his bed. 

“H—” The name gets stuck in Tobio’s throat.

Hinata is nuzzled up against Tobio, sleeping peacefully with his mouth slightly ajar.

Tobio’s mind starts going crazy. Was Hinata here the entire time? Has he been snuggling him for the past who knows how many hours? What is going on? Why is Hinata even in _his_ bed?

“Hinata!” Tobio shakes his roommate’s shoulder in an attempt to wake him up.

Little does Tobio know, Hinata is a very heavy sleeper.

“Hinata. Hinata! _HINATA_!” Tobio’s voice gradually gets louder. His last pitch seems to have stirred Hinata awake. The boy slowly blinks and extends his arms in a stretch, smacking Tobio on the chin in the process.

He’s going to kill him. It’s only been two months but Tobio is going to kill his roommate.

“IDIOT!” Tobio yells. He feels Hinata wince next him and wait – why are they still so close?

“Where am I?” Hinata mumbles. His eyes are barely open. 

It takes every ounce of self-control Tobio has to not flick Hinata on his forehead. “Why are you in _my_ bed?”

“What?” Hinata looks up. “Kageyama?”

 “Yes,” Tobio deadpans.

“WHOA!” Hinata rapidly moves away from Tobio, his legs and arms flailing as they carry him away. “Why am I in your bed?”

“I don’t know! You tell me!” 

“I think… I think I was sleepwalking.”

“So you sleepwalked into my bed? Out of all places to go?” Tobio draws his eyebrows together.

“Well, I’m…” Hinata drifts off. Tobio can’t see much in the dark, so maybe it’s the moonlight shining through the window that’s playing tricks on his eyes, but he swears Hinata is blushing. “I’m afraid of thunderstorms.”

Tobio doesn’t say anything.

“ _Agh!_ It’s really embarrassing!” Hinata covers his face with his hands. “I thought I grew out of it but I guess not? I mean, when I was little I used to crawl into my parent’s bed when it stormed and I guess my body just automatically thought to do the same thing now except right now that bed is yours and wow that sounds so weird, I’m so so—”

“Hinata.” Tobio cuts his babbling roommate off.

“I’m sorry! First Kenma, then your toothbrush, and now _this_.” Hinata sighs. “I’m probably the worst roommate ever. I’m so sorry.”

Something in Tobio’s chest tightens. He’s never seen Hinata this distraught. He didn’t think Hinata _could_ be sad. He’s always so happy, so enthusiastic and so optimistic about life. His heart is the sun and the sky is the limit for him. Yes, he’s a lot to handle as a roommate, but he adds an indescribable element to Tobio’s life. 

An element he isn’t sure he wants to give up yet. 

“It’s okay,” Tobio says. Roaring thunder fills the silent void. Tobio sees Hinata flinch during the lightning flashes and proceeds to say something he’d never say to anyone else. “You can stay, if you want.”

“Huh?” Hinata asks, his attention on the weather.

“You can stay here, if the storm bothers you too much.”

“Here? In your bed?”

Now Tobio feels heat creeping up _his_ face. He clears his throat. “Unless you wanna sleep on the floor?”

“Nope.” Hinata pats a pillow. “Right here is fine.”

“Okay.” Tobio lies back down. “Let’s sleep.”

“Yeah.” Hinata does the same, except this time there’s much more space between them. “Hey, Kageyama?”

“Hm?” 

“Thanks.”

A slight smile plays at Tobio’s lips. He closes his eyes and waits to fall asleep again.

_Wait._

“Hinata, did something happen to my toothbrush?”

Silence.

“Hinata?”

There’s snoring.

 

Tobio buys a new toothbrush the next day. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Kageyama does end up visiting Oikawa at his new place. He steals Oikawa's favorite hair conditioner for revenge.


End file.
